Rapidly changing market conditions drive businesses leaders to continually reinvent how their organizations do business, their products and their services. Regardless of the changes made, differences between the business of today and the business of tomorrow commonly necessitate a change in personnel knowledge, skills, and experiences. While acquiring some of this background can be accomplished through an initiatives’ change management program, strategic talent needs often require new foundational knowledge, skills, and experiences be added to the organization. Such additions can be costly and time consuming and, therefore, should be planned for within the organization’s long-term and annual business plans.
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Nathan Ives is a StrategyDriven Principal and Host of the StrategyDriven Podcast. For over twenty years, he has served as trusted advisor to executives and managers at dozens of Fortune 500 and smaller companies in the areas of management effectiveness, organizational development, and process improvement. To read Nathan’s complete biography, click here.
https://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/TalentAcquisition.jpg300400Nathan Iveshttps://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngNathan Ives2013-02-12 06:34:012019-08-18 21:56:53Talent Management Best Practice 5 – Include Talent Needs in Business Plans
Sales reps get a bad rap for trying to sell too hard.
You’ve heard the term “pushy salesman” or “aggressive salesperson” or even “obnoxious salesman.” How do those phrases make you feel?
And salespeople go to great lengths NOT to be perceived as pushy, or aggressive, or obnoxious – so they (maybe you) go to the opposite end of the spectrum and try to be or be known as professional.
BEWARE and BE AWARE: A professional sales call is okay, but boring. Professional meetings typically have no outcome. Or worse, they result in never-ending follow-up, void of sales. Not good. Here’s a good way to think about professionalism: your customer must perceive you as a professional person. It’s more of a look on your part, and a perception on the part of the customer. In today’s world of selling, professionalism is a given. Your words, actions, and deeds take over from there.
Professionalism is not bad, but professionalism alone will not net sales.
MAJOR AHA! Between pushy, aggressive, obnoxious, and professional lies a middle ground – a ground where sales are made. It’s known as assertive.
CAUTION: Assertiveness is not a word – it’s a strategy and a style. It’s not just “a way in which you conduct yourself.” Rather, it’s a full-blown strategy that has elements to master way before assertiveness can begin and be accepted as a style of selling.
BEWARE and BE AWARE: Assertiveness is a GOOD style of selling as long as you understand, and have mastered, the elements that make “assertive” acceptable on the part of the customer.
WHERE DOES ASSERTIVENESS COME FROM?
The root of assertiveness is belief. Your belief in what you do, your belief in who you represent, your belief in the products and services that you sell, your belief in yourself, your belief that you can differentiate yourself from your competitor (not compare yourself to), and your firm belief that the customer is better off having purchased from you. These are not things you believe in your head. Rather, these are things you must believe in your heart. Deep belief is the first step in creating an assertive process. Until you believe, mediocrity is the norm. Once you believe in your heart, all else is possible.
An Attitude of Positive Anticipation. In order to be assertive, positive attitude or YES! Attitude is not enough. You must possess an “Attitude of Positive Anticipation.” This means walking into any sales call with a degree of certainty that the outcome will be in your favor. It means having a spirit about you that is easily contagious – a spirit that your customer can catch, and buy.
Total preparation is the secret sauce of assertiveness. This must include customer-focused, pre-call planning as well as creating the objective, the proposed outcome, for a sales call. Most salespeople make the fatal mistake of preparing in terms of themselves (product knowledge, literature,business cards, blah, blah). The reality of total preparation means preparing in terms of the customer FIRST. Their needs, their desires, and their anticipated positive outcomes – their win. If these elements are not an integral part of your preparation, you will lose to someone who has them.
The assertive equation must also contain undeniable value in favor of the customer. This is not just part of preparation, this is also part of the relationships you have built with other customers who are willing to testify on your behalf, and other proof that you have (hopefully in video format) that a prospective customer can relate to, believe in, and purchase as a result of.
REALITY: It’s not about changing your beliefs, it’s about strengthening your beliefs. It’s not about changing your attitude, it’s about building your attitude. It’s not about changing your preparation, it’s about intensifying your preparation. It’s not about adding value, it’s about delivering perceived value.
BIGGER REALITY: When you have mastered belief, attitude, preparation, and value as I have just defined them, then and only then, can assertiveness and assertive selling begin to take place.
BIGGEST REALITY: Incremental growth in belief, attitude, preparation, and value offered will lead to assertive sales calls and an increase in sales.
YOUR STATURE IS THE GLUE: Your professional look, your quiet self-confidence, your surety of knowledge andinformation that can help your customer, your past history of success, your possession of undeniable proof, and your assertive ability to ask your customers to beresponsible to their customers and their employees. (Responsibility is an acceptable (and assertive) form of accountability). No customer wants to be accountable to a sales rep – but EVERY customer has a MISSION to be responsible to his or her customers and co-workers.
When you combine your belief, your attitude, your preparation, your value, and your assertiveness, the outcome is predictable: It’s more sales.
Next week is all about the assertive sales call. Get ready.
Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.
About the Author
Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].
https://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/JeffreyGitomer.jpg218156Nathan Iveshttps://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngNathan Ives2013-02-11 06:13:022016-08-07 22:11:41Pushy, aggressive, obnoxious, assertive, or professional. Which are you?
The Leader’s Pocket Guide by John Baldoni is a well organized collection of leadership principles focused on one’s self, colleagues, and organization. In his book, John provides readers with insights on a wide array of topics including:
Demonstrating character
Developing confidence
Inspiring others
Resolving conflict
Coaching and rewarding others
Aligning the organization to shared goals
Benefits of Using this Book
StrategyDriven Contributors like The Leader’s Pocket Guide for its immediately implementable advice relevant to leaders at all levels within an organization. Specifically, we liked the action tips, self-assessments, and ‘Think About…’ sections of John’s book, all of which challenge the reader to reflect on his or her leadership acumen to identify and improve on areas of weakness.
We found the layout of The Leader’s Pocket Guide to be advantageous for use in developing one’s subordinates. The individualized leadership lessons enable managers to conduct training and/or group discussion sessions focused on a particular principle. Additionally, this segmentation allows the book to be used in daily reflection to help one hone his or her own leadership skills.
The insightful, actionable leadership principles presented in this well organized book makes The Leader’s Pocket Guide a StrategyDriven recommended read.
https://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.png00StrategyDrivenhttps://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngStrategyDriven2013-02-07 06:42:242015-09-17 21:45:02Recommended Resources – The Leader’s Pocket Guide
Senior industry leader adds hands-on management and operational experience to StrategyDriven’s Power & Utilities focused advisory services.
Increasing demand for clean, affordable electricity combined with an aging infrastructure, retiring workers, growing regulations, rising capital costs, and intensifying budget pressures challenge utility executives and managers now more than ever before. To help utility leaders meet these challenges while improving operational safety and reliability, StrategyDriven Enterprises, LLC announces the election of Nathan Ives as the firm’s new Chief Executive Officer.
StrategyDriven advisors work with executives and managers to define their organization’s needs and develop and manage the complex, mission critical projects needed to improve operational effectiveness and lower costs in response to today’s most pressing challenges.
“I’m excited to be joining StrategyDriven during this time of unprecedented change and uncertainty within the energy sector,” says Nathan. “The modernization and expansion of our industry’s infrastructure, induction of a new workforce, and assimilation of an expanding regulatory regime will define how our industry operates for decades to come. At StrategyDriven, we’re proud to be working with industry leaders to address these challenges and adapt their organizations so they continue to operate safely, reliably, and efficiently.”
Prior to joining StrategyDriven, Nathan was a senior manager in Ernst & Young and Deloitte Consulting’s Power & Utility practices; advising industry leaders on the design and implementation of integrated fleet asset management programs.
Before becoming a professional consultant, he held several influential nuclear industry positions at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO); leading teams of operations professionals in the performance evaluation of dozens of domestic and international power plants and guiding the industry’s effort to redefine performance standards in the areas of organizational alignment, managerial decision-making, plant operations, and risk management.
Nathan joined INPO from PSEG’s Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station where he stood watch as a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensed Senior Reactor Operator.
In 1992, Nathan graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; earning a bachelor of science degree in physics followed by distinguished service as the Assistant Chief Nuclear Engineer and Quality Assurance Officer onboard USS GROTON SSN 694. He received a Master of Business Administration degree from Kennesaw State University in 2004.
Nathan can be contacted by phone at (678) 313-0150 or email at [email protected]. To read Nathan’s complete biography, click here.
Learn more about how StrategyDriven can help you improve your organization’s operational effectiveness and lower costs.
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Talent Management Best Practice 5 – Include Talent Needs in Business Plans
/in Premium, Strategic Planning, Talent Management/by Nathan IvesHi there! Gain access to this article with a StrategyDriven Insights Library – Total Access subscription or buy access to the article itself.
Sign-up now for your StrategyDriven Insights Library – Total Access subscription for as low as $15 / month (paid annually).
Not sure? Click here to learn more.
Don’t need a subscription? Buy access to Talent Management Best Practice 5 – Include Talent Needs in Business Plans for just $2!
About the Author
Pushy, aggressive, obnoxious, assertive, or professional. Which are you?
/in Marketing & Sales/by Jeffrey GitomerSales reps get a bad rap for trying to sell too hard.
You’ve heard the term “pushy salesman” or “aggressive salesperson” or even “obnoxious salesman.” How do those phrases make you feel?
And salespeople go to great lengths NOT to be perceived as pushy, or aggressive, or obnoxious – so they (maybe you) go to the opposite end of the spectrum and try to be or be known as professional.
BEWARE and BE AWARE: A professional sales call is okay, but boring. Professional meetings typically have no outcome. Or worse, they result in never-ending follow-up, void of sales. Not good. Here’s a good way to think about professionalism: your customer must perceive you as a professional person. It’s more of a look on your part, and a perception on the part of the customer. In today’s world of selling, professionalism is a given. Your words, actions, and deeds take over from there.
Professionalism is not bad, but professionalism alone will not net sales.
MAJOR AHA! Between pushy, aggressive, obnoxious, and professional lies a middle ground – a ground where sales are made. It’s known as assertive.
CAUTION: Assertiveness is not a word – it’s a strategy and a style. It’s not just “a way in which you conduct yourself.” Rather, it’s a full-blown strategy that has elements to master way before assertiveness can begin and be accepted as a style of selling.
BEWARE and BE AWARE: Assertiveness is a GOOD style of selling as long as you understand, and have mastered, the elements that make “assertive” acceptable on the part of the customer.
WHERE DOES ASSERTIVENESS COME FROM?
REALITY: It’s not about changing your beliefs, it’s about strengthening your beliefs. It’s not about changing your attitude, it’s about building your attitude. It’s not about changing your preparation, it’s about intensifying your preparation. It’s not about adding value, it’s about delivering perceived value.
BIGGER REALITY: When you have mastered belief, attitude, preparation, and value as I have just defined them, then and only then, can assertiveness and assertive selling begin to take place.
BIGGEST REALITY: Incremental growth in belief, attitude, preparation, and value offered will lead to assertive sales calls and an increase in sales.
YOUR STATURE IS THE GLUE: Your professional look, your quiet self-confidence, your surety of knowledge andinformation that can help your customer, your past history of success, your possession of undeniable proof, and your assertive ability to ask your customers to beresponsible to their customers and their employees. (Responsibility is an acceptable (and assertive) form of accountability). No customer wants to be accountable to a sales rep – but EVERY customer has a MISSION to be responsible to his or her customers and co-workers.
When you combine your belief, your attitude, your preparation, your value, and your assertiveness, the outcome is predictable: It’s more sales.
Next week is all about the assertive sales call. Get ready.
Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.
About the Author
Leadership Inspirations – Prior Preparation
/in Leadership Inspirations/by StrategyDrivenHoward Ruff (1930 – present)
American financial advisor
Recommended Resources – The Leader’s Pocket Guide
/in Management & Leadership, Recommended Resources/by StrategyDrivenby John Baldoni
About the Book
The Leader’s Pocket Guide
by John Baldoni is a well organized collection of leadership principles focused on one’s self, colleagues, and organization. In his book, John provides readers with insights on a wide array of topics including:
Benefits of Using this Book
StrategyDriven Contributors like The Leader’s Pocket Guide for its immediately implementable advice relevant to leaders at all levels within an organization. Specifically, we liked the action tips, self-assessments, and ‘Think About…’ sections of John’s book, all of which challenge the reader to reflect on his or her leadership acumen to identify and improve on areas of weakness.
We found the layout of The Leader’s Pocket Guide to be advantageous for use in developing one’s subordinates. The individualized leadership lessons enable managers to conduct training and/or group discussion sessions focused on a particular principle. Additionally, this segmentation allows the book to be used in daily reflection to help one hone his or her own leadership skills.
The insightful, actionable leadership principles presented in this well organized book makes The Leader’s Pocket Guide a StrategyDriven recommended read.
Nathan Ives Named StrategyDriven Enterprises Chief Executive Officer
/in Announcements/by Nathan IvesSenior industry leader adds hands-on management and operational experience to StrategyDriven’s Power & Utilities focused advisory services.
Increasing demand for clean, affordable electricity combined with an aging infrastructure, retiring workers, growing regulations, rising capital costs, and intensifying budget pressures challenge utility executives and managers now more than ever before. To help utility leaders meet these challenges while improving operational safety and reliability, StrategyDriven Enterprises, LLC announces the election of Nathan Ives as the firm’s new Chief Executive Officer.
StrategyDriven advisors work with executives and managers to define their organization’s needs and develop and manage the complex, mission critical projects needed to improve operational effectiveness and lower costs in response to today’s most pressing challenges.
“I’m excited to be joining StrategyDriven during this time of unprecedented change and uncertainty within the energy sector,” says Nathan. “The modernization and expansion of our industry’s infrastructure, induction of a new workforce, and assimilation of an expanding regulatory regime will define how our industry operates for decades to come. At StrategyDriven, we’re proud to be working with industry leaders to address these challenges and adapt their organizations so they continue to operate safely, reliably, and efficiently.”
Prior to joining StrategyDriven, Nathan was a senior manager in Ernst & Young and Deloitte Consulting’s Power & Utility practices; advising industry leaders on the design and implementation of integrated fleet asset management programs.
Before becoming a professional consultant, he held several influential nuclear industry positions at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO); leading teams of operations professionals in the performance evaluation of dozens of domestic and international power plants and guiding the industry’s effort to redefine performance standards in the areas of organizational alignment, managerial decision-making, plant operations, and risk management.
Nathan joined INPO from PSEG’s Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station where he stood watch as a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensed Senior Reactor Operator.
In 1992, Nathan graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; earning a bachelor of science degree in physics followed by distinguished service as the Assistant Chief Nuclear Engineer and Quality Assurance Officer onboard USS GROTON SSN 694. He received a Master of Business Administration degree from Kennesaw State University in 2004.
Nathan can be contacted by phone at (678) 313-0150 or email at [email protected]. To read Nathan’s complete biography, click here.
Learn more about how StrategyDriven can help you improve your organization’s operational effectiveness and lower costs.